3 ms·

I think it's worth pointing out that in order to "sell" to investors (as opposed to customers), having the product (and the customers!) ready actually is very i

by rsp1984 9y ago

I think it's worth pointing out that in order to "sell" to investors (as opposed to customers), having the product (and the customers!) ready actually is very important. So the proper sequence is: 1. Sell. 2. Build. 3. Pitch to investors. 4. Repeat with more resources. Inexperienced non-technical founders sometimes get the steps 1-3 backwards.

convolvatron 9y ago
reconciling creativity with the market is a really longstanding problem in lots of areas. so I'm really interested in discussion that leads to any insight. I'm curious about 1 before 2. Any attempt I've made in the past to understand market interest without having something that people can actually touch has always been really squishy. People aren't that interested to talk, when you do they always say something like 'well, sure, I guess that sounds interesting'. People that seem really interested usually don't have enough bandwidth for a beta product evaluation, even though they will say they are really excited and want to help. Often, product uptake comes from an unexpected direction/vertical, just by accident. So while in principle getting customer-based design information up front is ideal, in practice it seems like you don't get that much no matter how much you try. Maybe you're suggesting iterating on 1 and 2 until you feel like you have a solid case for 3?
- dhimes 9y ago
  Yeah I tried this too and you're right: people will say they will buy stuff, but when it's time to pull out their wallet it's often a different story. I think that is why point 1 is "Sell," not "Interview" or "Imaginary sell." For example, some people put up a web page, run some ads, and have a complete signup process that once the CC is entered they get a "thanks for your interest- we'll be in touch when we get it built and by the way we didn't really charge your CC." We've had discussions before on this board about whether or not that's ethical, IIRC.
- mygo 9y ago
  > 'well, sure, I guess that sounds interesting' I think the question boils down to: would you be willing to spend the next few years of your life on a 'well, sure, I guess that sounds interesting'? There are all kinds of people. Early adopters are usually who a startup would want to start off with. If you can’t find even a few people who are excited about the value that your nonexistent product would add to their life (not even yourself as a user?), should you be excited about building it? Money talks. You want people who are excited enough about what you’re building to give you money for a nonexistent product/service. Via Preorders, kickstarters, etc. Words can be cheap, but once they’ve bought in you can value their feedback.

convolvatron 9y ago

reconciling creativity with the market is a really longstanding problem in lots of areas. so I'm really interested in discussion that leads to any insight. I'm curious about 1 before 2. Any attempt I've made in the past to understand market interest without having something that people can actually touch has always been really squishy. People aren't that interested to talk, when you do they always say something like 'well, sure, I guess that sounds interesting'. People that seem really interested usually don't have enough bandwidth for a beta product evaluation, even though they will say they are really excited and want to help. Often, product uptake comes from an unexpected direction/vertical, just by accident. So while in principle getting customer-based design information up front is ideal, in practice it seems like you don't get that much no matter how much you try. Maybe you're suggesting iterating on 1 and 2 until you feel like you have a solid case for 3?

dhimes 9y ago
Yeah I tried this too and you're right: people will say they will buy stuff, but when it's time to pull out their wallet it's often a different story. I think that is why point 1 is "Sell," not "Interview" or "Imaginary sell." For example, some people put up a web page, run some ads, and have a complete signup process that once the CC is entered they get a "thanks for your interest- we'll be in touch when we get it built and by the way we didn't really charge your CC." We've had discussions before on this board about whether or not that's ethical, IIRC.
mygo 9y ago
> 'well, sure, I guess that sounds interesting' I think the question boils down to: would you be willing to spend the next few years of your life on a 'well, sure, I guess that sounds interesting'? There are all kinds of people. Early adopters are usually who a startup would want to start off with. If you can’t find even a few people who are excited about the value that your nonexistent product would add to their life (not even yourself as a user?), should you be excited about building it? Money talks. You want people who are excited enough about what you’re building to give you money for a nonexistent product/service. Via Preorders, kickstarters, etc. Words can be cheap, but once they’ve bought in you can value their feedback.